Melody McDonald of the Star-Telegram has just published another must-read article on SurroGenesis and Tonya Collins. Among the highlights:
Her husband said he is clueless. Her business partner claims he was blindsided. Relatives and former employees are now questioning how much of what Tonya Collins told them was true.
Those close to Collins — the Colleyville woman who owns a California-based company that connected would-be parents with surrogates and egg donors — are still reeling over accusations that $2.5 million paid by the clients is missing from an escrow account.
Collins, 33, and her company, SurroGenesis, along with the Michael Charles Independent Financial Holdings Group and Jack Kiserow, are now the subject of a lawsuit and federal investigation related to the missing funds. The lawsuit was filed earlier this week in California on behalf of about 100 clients.
“I am completely cooperating with authorities,” said Kiserow, Collins’ business partner who is listed as the owner of the Michael Charles group, the company that was supposed to be safeguarding prospective parents’ money.
He said that two government agencies are investigating. “They have my complete support in seeking criminal action against her. . . . I have no sympathy for her whatsoever. She burned me bad.”
Kiserow — who agreed to go into business with Collins after she helped him and his partner have triplets — is among dozens, perhaps hundreds, of people who believe that they may have been duped.
Clients, friends and former employees say Collins, who was a surrogate mother herself in the past, seemed to be a sweet, savvy businesswoman who said she studied chemistry at the University of the Pacific and went on to become the head of a successful company with dozens of locations nationwide.
In the past few weeks, however, a different image of Collins and SurroGenesis has emerged.
An official at the University of the Pacific said there is no record that Collins, whose maiden name was Pruett, ever attended college there. Most of Collins’ “offices” across the country, including one in Fort Worth, were actually just addresses at mail-drop businesses.
Her husband — who recently left Colleyville and moved in with his parents in California — doesn’t know what to believe anymore.
“I’m the clueless husband,” said James Collins. “Up until about a month and a half ago, I thought we had bought a house in Texas. My understanding now is that it is leased.”
Collins, through her attorney, has declined to comment. But her attorney, Kevin Clancy, said, “I can tell you, though, that she doesn’t have any money. . . . It is a sad situation, but there is not going to be any money found anywhere that is going to be able to compensate these people.”
Fortunately for Mr. Clancy he was paid and I can take a pretty good guess as to how his client came into possession of those funds. Another reason there may not be any “money found anywhere” is Tonya has used the last few weeks spending whatever remaining funds that might have existed. This included purchasing a new car in a shady effort to eliminate any equity that might have existed in her vehicle that could have been used by the victims of her criminal enterprise.
With respect to where the funds might have gone:
In June 2008, relatives and co-workers said, the Collinses moved to Colleyville with their seven children. She told everyone she was moving to be closer to an employee who was a good friend and to where the cost of living was cheaper, several sources said.
Looking back, Tonya Collins’ relative said, Collins’ lifestyle changed as the business grew. When the relative started working for SurroGenesis in October 2006, she said Collins wasn’t flashy and lived “comfortably.” By January 2008, she was flaunting diamonds, buying cars and wearing all of the latest fashions.
“It was too good to be true,” she said.
James Collins said they did not live lavishly, but he said her salary was enough to support the family. He said he was able to quit working and take care of the kids in their sprawling, two-story home on Pool Road in Colleyville.
He said he rarely talked to his wife about the business after he quit working there and is shocked at the turn of events. He said he recently moved out and back to California, where he is working as a plumber. He said he plans to bring the children to California after school lets out.
“It sucks to be stuck in this crap,” he said. “Honest to God, I know absolutely nothing.”
Kiserow, who said he is a huge advocate of surrogacy, said he is sick over what has happened.
“At least I got my kids,” he said. “Some of these people aren’t going to get families.”
“It is a sad situation, but there is not going to be any money . . . to compensate these people.”
Kiserow pleads his ignorance:
Kiserow, who is named in the lawsuit, said he had no idea anything was amiss until he received a call from Collins’ attorney March 9, the day before he and Collins were supposed to have a meeting.
The attorney told him that $2 million was missing, Kiserow said.
“I was completely blindsided,” he said.
The CEO of Michael Charles Holdings was blindsided? What exactly was he doing as the executive officer of the company that he could have possibly not noticed that more than $3,000,000 of trust funds disappeared? Perhaps someone can ask Mr. Kiserow why he was sued by Bank of America and TriCounty Banks. Also, it is interesting that before the scandal even broke, Tonya lawyered up and it took her criminal defense attorney to notify the company’s CEO that there was not a penny left in the trust account.
It is amazing what an enterprising journalist can discover over the span of just a few days. Imagine what the FBI could have done if they had committed their enormous resources into this investigation.
Related Posts:
- Media Has SurroGenesis & Tonya Collins In Its Crosshairs
- More Information On SurroGenesis, Michael Charles & Tonya Collins
- Dallas Morning News Turns Up The Heat On SurroGenesis & Tonya Collins
- Kiserow Digs Himself Into A Deeper Hole
- Texas Newspapers Now Reporting On SurroGenesis Scandal
- FBI Launches “Formal Investigation”; Dallas Morning News Reports On SurroGenesis
- The Fraud Perpetrated By Tonya Collins, SurroGenesis & Michael Charles
- Six Months Later, Tonya Collins Has Yet To Be Charged With A Crime
- More Tonya Collins’ Sleaze
- The Genesis Of Michael Charles Holdings
It is infuriating to read Kiserow’s pleadings that he was a victim too, and even more upsetting to hear him say that “at least he got his family.” All Kiserow had to do was to maintain the bond that his website and corporate agreements indicated they [Michael Charles] had. Furthermore, it is ludicrous to believe that a CEO of an escrow company knew nothing until he was told by Tonya Collins and her attorney in March. Even still. after Kisserow admits to learning of the problem, he made no attempt to contact the clients of his company and inform them of the situation. Instead, in the most cruelest of actions, he let everybody frantically make calls to Michael Charles and Surrogenesis only to get no answer and then the “discontinued number” messages. Kiserow is as guilty as Tonya Collins.
It seems like the company ran itself with with the money running into their pockets. Between 2007-2008 the money has to be accounted for. The money trail has to lead to trust accounts? perhaps, those accounts set up, which seems to be a great way to hide money need to be looked at to see when they were opened and when there were deposits. The money is there. I bet. Acting stupid and being stupid are’nt always the same. I like to ask Mr. Kiserow, Tonya, Ann, etcc.. We already know Mr. Collins answer from the interview.
It is my guess that Tonya used the money not only to fund her life style but to run the company, (assuming there would always be more money coming in). She traveled extensively always trying to bring in new business and that can’t be cheap. I am also guessing that in order to maximize the amount of interest she’d receive she put the money into risky investments like the stock market and lost the rest. I hope one day we will learn more details.
According to an article that appeared on the 04/22 online edition of The Colleyville Courier– http://www.colleyvilletexascourier.com/news/v-print/story/4721.html– Tonya is sending her kids to private school. For someone whom her criminal defense attorney has indicated “doesn’t have any money,” she sure found a way to pay for her children’s tuition…with her victims’ funds!
I worked for tonya as her personal assistant from aug. to january this year, taking care of her kids, cleaning, cooking, etc. She had so much money to throw around all the time. I remember one day she went and bought her daughter kayla a princess bed, it was like 2 grand, and then the next day she bought her two sons, and two daughters each new computers. I painted their bedrooms for them and redecorated, she spent like $15k in a matter of days. I never once thought something was fishy. I just thought she made really good money. One thing that was weird, was she told me in secret that their house located at 6100 Pool road was in her friend’s name, because when she was ready to be done with her husband james, she didnt want him to be able to touch the house, so her friend put it in her name and she paid the mortgage. she told me not to tell james . She also told me she bought kayla , her 15 year old, a brand new car, but not to let james know because he would be mad. I feel like such an idiot not to realize what she was doing. I remember one time I accidentally washed something of hers from Lane Bryant that should have been dry cleaned and she got so mad at me . She screamed and yelled and told me ” do you know how much f***ing money this dress costs ? ” Now Im thinking, no Tonya, I dont and neither do you, because it wasnt your money to begin with. I feel so sorry for her kids, especially their twins they adopted, Vincent and Vonny, even though James was home all day with them, I would be cleaning or cooking and they would lay in bed screaming all day, or fall asleep in their high chairs, because he would leave them their for 2-3 hours and ignore them. I would try to take control but then he would get adjetated. Vonny would have diaper rashes so bad she would bleed if you tried to wipe her, then tonya would come home screaming because vonny was screaming. I didn’t know what to think or say. It was so sad. She only cared about $$$$.